


[Deadname] Parker

by Burning_hot_pan



Category: Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)
Genre: Trans Peter Parker, Trans Spider-Man
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-15
Updated: 2018-10-15
Packaged: 2019-08-02 18:29:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,058
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16310441
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Burning_hot_pan/pseuds/Burning_hot_pan
Summary: A one-shot following Peter Parker from birth until he comes out as trans. I might make this into a full story.





	[Deadname] Parker

When Peter Parker was born, he was swaddled in a bright pink blanket. His emotional parents, both crying in awe, didn’t name him Peter. The name that they did choose for him is irrelevant. On his birth certificate, the “Sex” category was marked with an “F.” When they got home, his parents dressed him up in little dresses and hair bows. Friends of the family cooed over how adorable he was. 

* * *

 

When Peter was three, he refused to get in the dress that his mother laid out for him. He screamed and cried and threw a tantrum. A compromise was reached and he was allowed to wear a blouse and nice pants to the dinner party instead. They were late, and he ended up ripping the little flower off the front of his shirt, anyway. But it was better than him complaining about it for the whole night. It was so strange, because Peter was otherwise such a well-mannered boy.

* * *

 

When Peter was five, he started school. He wore only pants and gender-neutral shirts. Except for special occasions, like Hannukah, where he would wear dresses to please his parents. It was worth feeling uncomfortable for a couple hours to see the look on his mom’s face when she saw his adorable little body in the cutest outfit. 

 

* * *

 

When Peter was six and three quarters, he had to move in with Aunt May and Uncle Ben. 

_My parents are gone._

That thought was on repeat in his mind constantly. His parents were gone. Gone. He was never, ever going to be able to see them again. He just couldn’t believe it. He stayed in his new room for nearly a week, filling up his new wastebasket with used tissues.

After a few days of this, Uncle Ben popped his head in. “Hey, buddy. I know you aren’t feeling so hot right now, but you like space, right?”

The next day and a half was devoted to watching Star Wars and shoving popcorn in each others’ mouths. Peter felt so much lighter after the credits of the last movie ended. Not happier or even necessarily better- but lighter. He felt a connection with Luke Skywalker, who also struggled with losing his parents. The fact he was the hero of the story didn’t hurt, either. Aunt May and Uncle Ben gave Peter a Star Wars-themed birthday party that year, dressing up as Princess Leia and Han Solo respectfully.

* * *

When Peter was eight, he asked Uncle Ben if he could go to the barber shop with him. 

“You sure you won’t be bored?” Ben asked skeptically. “There’s not anything to do there; you’ll just be waiting for me.”

Peter suddenly looked bashful. “Well, I was sorta wondering if I could get my hair cut, too. Short, like Luke Skywalker.”

Ben, shocked but not seeing anything wrong with it, said it was fine with him as long as May approved. 

“Yes!” Peter exclaimed. He pumped his fist in the air and ran to grab his coat. 

 

* * *

When Peter was ten, he saw an ad for this website called Tumblr. He signed up and learned… a lot over the next few weeks. Some of which scarred him a bit. One day, he saw some other users discussing this thing called “transgender.” He researched it for a while. Well, the term “research” is used loosely; he was ten years old, after all. However, he discovered that he connected deeply with the definition and stories of other trans people that he found. After a week and a half of contemplation, he decided to show Aunt May. 

“Hey, sweetie, what’s up?” She asked him as he entered the living room. 

“Um…” Peter started. “Can we talk?” His stupid heart was starting to pound, and he was most definitely not appreciating it.

May muted Keeping Up With the Kardashians (she claimed she watched it ironically) and turned to face her nephew. “Sure, kiddo. What’s on your mind?” She noticed Peter’s laptop in his hands. “Uh oh- Did a Nigerian Prince ask you for money?”

“What? No. Why? Do you know one?”

May let out a breathy laugh. “No, never mind. What did you wanna talk about?”

“Okay, so. I just,” Peter took a deep breath, “wanted to show you something.” He handed her his computer. He explained to her what transgender meant and showed her everything he related to when he was researching the topic. 

May listened attentively throughout his presentation. She already knew most of what he was saying, but kept quiet and nodded anyway, so as to avoid discouraging him. However, some of the information was new to her, and she listened with great interest. When Peter finished, she was still left with one question.

“Sweetie, I love your enthusiasm for learning about all of this. And you don’t have to answer this if you don’t feel comfortable or if you’re not sure yet, but are you telling me this because you think you might be transgender?”

Peter- mouth clamped shut, eyes starting to well up, fear apparent on his face- nodded hesitantly. 

May wasn’t blind. Ever since Peter first started to live with her and Ben, he showed signs of being trans, but she never wanted to assume. Truth be told, she was hoping she was wrong. Not because she would feel any different about her nephew, but because she did have a general idea of the long list of struggles that trans people had to endure. 

But when Peter actually admitted to her that he was trans, all she felt was a swell of pride. Pride because he knew who he was. Pride because he accepted himself. Pride because he had the courage to tell her. May placed her hands on Peter’s shoulders. 

“Honey, I love you. No matter what, okay? I love you unconditionally.” Peter looked up at his aunt with a hopeful expression, tears starting to make their way down his face. “This doesn’t change who you are on the inside. You are still that amazing kid that never fails to make me laugh. You are still that same kid who astounds me by how smart you are. Okay?”

Peter, his eyes welling up, simply nodded. 

Aunt May leaned in to give him a hug. He squeezed her tight with both of his arms. They stayed like that for a long time.


End file.
